Starbucks Sued Over Tip Jars That 'Invited Criminal Behavior'

Starbucks has been slapped with a lawsuit three years after a Missouri altercation over an open Starbucks tip jar led to the death of 54-year-old Roger Kreutz.

On March 3, 2008, Kreutz chased down then 19-year-old Aaron Poisson after seeing the culprit nab a tip jar with less than $5 inside it. The two physically struggled outside Poisson's car, but Poisson eventually broke free. He then backed his Ford out of a parking spot and over Kreutz, who later died of head injuries.

Kuertz's family filed a wrongful-death lawsuit in St. Louis County Circuit Court on Monday, but not against Poisson. They're blaming Starbucks, who they allege "invited criminal behavior" by leaving tip jars "within reach of customers." According to the St. Louis Post Dispatch:

[The lawsuit] alleges that Starbucks "did not employ security to prevent the perpetration of such crimes" and that it "invited the act of perpetration of said crime" by having a tip jar.

As a "direct and proximate" result of this, Kreutz was killed after he was hit by the car, the filing claims.

It says Starbucks had a duty to "exercise reasonable care" to protect Kreutz or give him adequate warning against harm.